VULVO-VAGINAL CANDIDIASIS - EPIDEMIOLOGIC, DIAGNOSTIC, AND THERAPEUTIC CONSIDERATIONS

Although it is the second most common vaginal infection in North Ameri ca, vulvovaginal candidiasis is a non-notifiable disease and has been excluded from the ranks of sexually transmitted diseases. Not surprisi ngly, vulvovaginal candidiasis has received scant attention by public health authorities, funding agencies, and researchers. Epidemiologic d ata on risk factors and pathogenic mechanisms remain inadequately stud ied. Most important, standards of care, including diagnosis and therap y, remain undefined. A conference was held in April 1996 to define and summarize what is known and supported by scientific data in the areas of epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of vulvovaginal candidiasis ; but, more important, the conference aimed at defining what is not kn own, poorly studied, and controversial. Guidelines for the treatment a nd diagnosis of the different forms of vulvovaginal candidiasis are su ggested.